October Sky: Review By Vamp

Well when my Dad wanted to watch this movie, I said alright, but I thought I'd never seen this movie before, but it turns out that I had, and it'd been years, but it doesn't alter the fact that this is one of the most epic movies I've ever seen in my life, and it is a very good movie to watch. Definitely worth the five stars I gave it.

The director of this movie is Joe Johnston, who hasn't done too many movies, but the ones he has done I have definitely liked alot, and this one is no different. Johnston works together with the author of the book, Home H. Hickam Jr., and the author of the screenplay, Lewis Colick. Together the three bring this beautiful and touching masterpiece to work, and it really is just that, a masterpiece movie. It's definitely done very professionally.

The visuals of this movie are actually pretty stunning for what little is needed. Since this is based on actual events and actual characters, the visuals weren't a thing that was worried about, but they definitely got the coal mines down very good, and the footage at the end from the lives of the real people that were portrayed in this film are very interesting to see, as is always the case with these kind of movies. Also, the clothes in this movie and the filters and angles they use, actually make it seem like it was filmed in the times that it was happening, which is always an added bonus.

The storyline is a very gripping, very powerful, and very touching storyline. It's all based on true events too, which just makes it all the more touching and powerful to see. A young boy, binded down by his father and community that relies solely on it's coal mine, pursues his dream of rocket science with his friends, constantly fighting those people who want to stop him from pursuing his career. It's very moving and touching, as I've said before, and at points it can be a real tear jerker. All of it is done very well, and you're dead interested right from the get go, which is always good with movies.

Jake Gyllenhaal plays the lead of this movie, Homer Hickam. Homer Hickam is a boy that has grown up in a small coal mining community, but has become interested in the space programs, mainly, rockets. He begins to start building rockets with some of his friends, and a loner geeky kid who really turns out to be a good friend. Well they begin their experiments, building their first rocket, and when they fire it, it lands at the mine. Well Homer's father finds out about it, and like always, he is not fond of it. He tells him he must stop this because his fathers dream is what his father sees. Homer has never really been special in his father's eyes, and he always has to live in the shadow of his older brother, who is the allstar football player with the scholarship. So Homer begins a launch site eight miles out, and with the help of the locals he begins to put it together very nicely, and becomes famous in his hometown community. Well suddenly all goes to hell, and he begins to work in the mines, and he drops out of school, and loses sight of his real dream, and struggles to do what he thinks is right. Jake Gyllenhaal does an excellent job in this movie, and he's one of my favorite actors. He's very good at playing such a moving character, and he really ties the whole movie together and makes it very convincing.

Chris Cooper, who I don't really know all that well as an actor, plays Homer Hickam's father, John Hickam. John is a simple and goodhearted man, but he is also as stubborn as a mule. He has spent his entire life in this small mining community, and he is the head of the mining facility in the town. He is the one that knows everything about the mine, and he constantly plays the hero, but it's his dream that his son Homer will take over for him when he can no longer work there, but there's one problem. His son wants absolutely nothing to do with the mine, and he definitely does not want to work there. This infuriates John, and he constantly acts like a jerk towards his son, but deep down he really loves Homer. Then one day, playing the hero and saving pretty much all the miners, he is injured badly, and his son takes over at the mine to pay the hospital bills. When John returns to the mine, he finds out that his son is doing very well, and it gives him hope. Chris Cooper does an excellent job in this movie. His character is such a confusing one, and has so many inner struggles that it seems like it'd be a hard character to portray, but Chris Cooper does it superbly. It's really convincing and believable, and that just makes the movie all the more believable.

Laura Dern, whom I've liked ever since Jurassic Park, plays Miss Riley, Homer Hickam's teacher. Miss Riley is the one that motivates Homer the most, she believes in him every step of the way, but she knows that he's not the best in some of the fields he will need to know to be able to get this rocket thing down, like Math in particular, but she never gives up on him, and that's what keeps him going. She even buys him a book for his birthday, that has EVERYTHING he will need to help him with his rockets. She also puts the idea of him entering the science fair into his head, she thinks it will help him get famous and really jump start his career, but when he starts to slip, and drops out of school to work in the mines, she gives him the cold shoulder because she had so much faith in his potential that she was sad to see it all go down the drain like that, but she still believed in him. Laura Dern is always an incredible actress in movies, and here it is no different in any way. She really has the whole attitude that is needed for this character down, and it makes the movie all the more incredible, and she's so convincing with this character, that it's so believable.

Chris Owen plays Quentin, who is a nerdy boy that really has no friends. He lives in a small ramshackle home with his mother and father, and has to share a tiny room with his brother and sister. He's incredibly smart, but he is very outright with it, and everyone thinks he is strange, but Homer Hickam risks his social life to make friends with him. He is asked to help with all the stuff that Homer and his friends can't do,and at first he thinks it's a prank, and that Homer's trying to trick him into aiding them, but it turns out turns out he's not. So Quentin decides to help, and he turns out to be a real cool kid, and he helps out Homer the most, and they become good friends. Throughout the movie Quentin's pretty much the guide, he's there to teach everyone what's what, and to make sure that nothing goes wrong. Chris Owen, who normally plays weird characters, is actually a pretty normal person in this movie, which is another thing that was so good about his performance. Having been used to playing such weird characters, he really got this role down, and it was sort of a moving role, but Chris Owen really does awesome, and he was an excellent casting choice because he does such a convincing job, and it really adds to the believability of the movie.

All in all I'd have to say that if you haven't seen this movie, then you have no clue what you are missing. It is one of the greatest movies of our time by far, and it's very moving, touching, dramatic, and even hysterical, which always makes for a good movie. Also, it's based on a true story, which always makes movies good, so don't waste the rental fee, just go out and buy it because you'll just end up wanting to get the DVD anyway. This movie is definitely one for everybody, and it's worth every penny you spend on it!!!!!